Official Review

Kozmo did it again! KozmoMagic is on a hot streak with releasing some really great products lately and this is yet another one to add to the list.

This time it is Jon Armstrong and his Cut Cards. If you are a more-than-average card player, a casino hopper or a professional gambler, you will recognize the term "cut cards". In casinos these are usually a thin plastic card the size of the deck in use, made of one solid color that go on the bottom of the deck to prevent the accidental peeking of the bottom card. In other games they are used to signal the end of a dealing round.

In this case, they are more intended for use in Collector-plot and Sandwich-plot effects. Now, if you do gambling routines in your act that require (or benefit from) a cut card in play, these will work perfectly for those too. An advantage here is that the cards all have a white border on them, helping them blend into the deck around the edge but standing out clearly in any spread or fan.

You get eight (8) cut cards total, 2 red, 2 blue and 4 black. All cards are the same color on both sides and all have white borders. They are all made of playing card stock so if you are using them as a cut card and doing Greek deals, seconds or even centers with these in the deck, they will be much easier to do because it is not a stiff piece of plastic that you are trying to work around. The cards are not gimmicked in any way.

The advantage that this gives you in Sandwich/Collector effects is that when the selected cards appear between the cut cards, it is immediately and clearly obvious that there is/are a card(s) between them; there is no confusing the sandwiched card with other cards of the deck.

The DVD is just like any other Kozmo DVD - excellent video, audio and lighting quality, an easy to navigate menu with one slight annoyance: there is no 'Play All' button here, but that is not going to affect the star rating. The other thing I will point out has to do with the video quality: It is noticeably different during the segments which were filmed at the Magic Castle. It does not matter who produces a DVD or what equipment is used to film, but every DVD I have ever seen shot in the Hollywood Magic Castle just has something about it that is not quite as crisp. Again, nothing that will affect the rating.

The teaching is typical of Jon Armstrong - very thorough and well-done. Here he teaches 5 different effects and one bonus sleight. All but one of the effects are sandwich effects and the fifth is a Collectors-effect (as made obvious by its title, 'Balls to the Wall Collectors'). I am not sure if the spelling of the effect names with the 't' in them were intentional or not, but they are all spelled as 'Sandwitch', 'Tiltwitch', etc.

For one of the effects you have to use 2 red and 1 blue (or whatever combination you want) and construct a gimmick, which Jon teaches you how to do. If you do not want it to be permanent, you can use adhesives like Zig Two-Way glue or a few "de-stickified" (yes, I just made that up) pieces of double stick tape. Either way, the effect is well worth it.

All of the effects are easy to do and do not require any advanced sleights to execute, although there is no reason you could not use advanced sleights if you prefer.

The bonus bit is a utility sleight he teaches and is something he has become known for called the 'Gin Pick'.

There are some really cool things you can do with these cards and if you do Faro work, Sandwich effects or Collector-type effects, these cards will bring a different flavor to those effects for you. If you are a fan of Simon Aronson and are familiar with his UnDo Influence principle, these cards will be great for those effects. It will also work very well in some Assembly-type effects, certain Open Prediction-type effects and much more. The only limits are your imagination.

These cards can be used with any back design and the three colors allow you to have some nice contrast with the cards you are using. The red cards will stand out nicely in a blue deck, the black cards will stand out nicely in a red or white deck and so on.

I have not gotten official word if replacement (refill) cards will eventually be available without the DVD or not, but it would be a great idea of they were. If you use these cards with Faro shuffling, they can tend to wear down quickly but at $20/USD, that is not too much to pay at all if you eventually need another set.

Watch the video trailer and if you like what you see, or if you perform any effects within the aforementioned plots, you will certainly find uses for these cards. If you do gambling effects and do not like using double-backed cards or ad cards as cut cards, these will serve you well.

Product info for Jon Armstrong's Cut Cards (DVD and Cards)

"These are the cards I've wanted to have for a very long time. I am super excited about this!"- Jon Armstrong

Jon Armstrong's "Cut Cards" include eight, two sided colored cards (two red, two blue and four black) that are made of regular card stock and have broad white borders. So, unlike other casino cut cards, they are lost when squared into the deck. And yet are instantly visible when spreading.

Cut Cards are perfect for any "sandwich" trick. You get great color contrasts that allow spectators to instantly see their chosen card between these brightly colored props. Any "sandwich" effect becomes more conversational and easier to follow with Cut Cards.

On the included DVD, Jon teaches some of his favorite routines using Cut Cards and shares moves you can apply to any sandwich routine. But, the Cut Cards themselves provide many new opportunities for your card magic.